Organizing Your PKB

Organizing Your PKB
(Notes, Tags, Titles, and More)

Once you start accumulating information in your PKB, you can begin to organize for success! In addition to just searching for notes using the search box, you can organize your notes using notebooks and tags. By naming your notes strategically, your notebooks will be arranged so that it is easier to browse for information. By using a sensible tagging system, you will be able to create powerful collections of knowledge on important topics that will make your smarter over time.

The following tutorial provides a suggested guide for organizing the information in your PKB. The suggested system for creating tags and titles within your notes is just one strategy that makes sense for academic work, but there are many other options! Follow these suggested strategies, but don't forget to check out the additional resources under the More Information section, and experiment on your own.
Note: This tutorial is shown using the Mac version of Evernote - the steps are about the same on any device, but we recommend that you use a desktop (Mac or PC) version in the beginning to get used to all of Evernote’s features. If you do not have access to a personal computer, you can go to the Evernote web site at http://www.evernote.com to access your Evernote notebooks within any web browser.
1. Use tags to organize your notes:

• a. Open up your Evernote account and survey your existing notebooks. Remember - to view all of the notebooks within a stack (for example, .F12 - Classes), be sure the small gray arrow to the left of the title is pointing down. If not, click the arrow once to unfold the notebooks.

• b. Select a subject notebook - PSY 113 is selected in the screenshot below. You'll see that the notebook contains (at least) the two notes created from tutorial 2 - Creating Your PKB. Select the note titled Lecture #1.

2. Create tags that identify the content and function of your note:

• a. Our suggested tagging strategy for content is subject.topic - for example, PSY113.learningtheories. Place your cursor in the box that reads "click to add tags" and tag accordingly.

• b. If your TAGS section in the side bar, located on the left-hand side of screen, is still collapsed and not visible, click the small gray arrow next to the TAGS box to unfold the contents. You'll be able to see all of the tags you've created up until this point.

• c. Tags for function are dependent on the content of a note. For example, if some of the material in your Lecture #1 note is going to be included on your first exam, you might want to apply a tag that includes the function Exam1. Our suggested tagging strategy for function is subject.function - for example, PSY113.Exam1.

3. Use note titles that identify the function and content of your note:

• a. Another option for organizing your notes - in addition to or instead of tags - is to strategically label the titles of your notes. Although you can use both tags and titles, if you want to use a similar strategy to the one described above instead of tags, try the following strategy...
• b. With your PSY 113 folder still selected, create a new note.

• c. Our strategy is is to label the note with the date followed by two to three keywords - YY/MM/DD keyword keyword keyword. Using keywords is similar tags - the amount and types of keywords depend on the content and function of the note. Using the Lecture #1 note as our continued example, title the note 12/08/31 - PSY113 LearningTheories Exam 1

4. Use bullets to organize notes:

• a. The bullets feature in Evernote is similar to that in Word Docs. Take advantage of this feature when typing your notes directly into Evernote. Use bullets and bulleted numbers as a way to provide examples and more specific characteristics of bigger concepts and ideas.

5. Use checkboxes to create to-do lists:

• a. Use the checkbox feature to create weekly (or daily, etc.) to-do lists for all of your classes. Create a weekly to-do list for your PSY113 class. Create a new note. The example screenshot shows the YY/MM/DD keyword keyword keyword strategy demonstrated above - 12/089/01 - PSY113 ToDo

• b. The checkbox feature is located to the right of the tabs on the Evernote bar. Place your cursor where you want to insert your first checkbox, and click the checkbox symbol.

• c. When you've completed a task, simply click the checkbox to highlight with a check.

• d. Use symbols in titles to arrange and organize similar types of notes. Add a ! in front of your to-do list title to indicate priority; whenever you need to immediately pull up your to-do list, simply select the 'sort by title' option and the to-do list will be moved to the top of the list.

6. Use note links to create study guides, indices and more:

• a. Use note links to start creating a study guide and notes index for your first PSY113 exam. WIth the PSY113 notebook still selected, create a new note titled 'Study Guide'. Use the existing PSY113.Exam1 tag to further specify the note content. One way to consider organizing your study guide notes is by topic - for example, learning theories.

• b. Start creating an easy-to-access index under the 'Learning Theories' header by copying links to to your related notes. Select a note - for example, Lecture #1; click Note on the Evernote bar, and select 'Copy Note Link'

• c. Select the Study Guide note and place your cursor where you want to past the note link. Right click and select Paste. Do the same actions to copy all other relevant note links.

• d. You can also copy external web links into your notes. For example, if you find a useful web site or study guide online, simply copy the web address; click Format on the Evernote bar; and then select Link and Add.

• e. Paste the web address in the provided box, click OK, and the web address link will be embedded in your note.

You will now use some of the PKM strategies that you learned above to create a new note. Follow the steps below to complete this activity:

1. Return to the 03-Organizing for Success module page and click the link "More Resources to Explore" under the heading "For More Information..."
2. Choose one of the first 3 resources listed - Using Evernote to Save Your Schooling; College Student's 10 Tips for De-stressing; or Evernote Tips & Stories - and read the linked blog post.
3. After you've read the blog post, open your Evernote. You will be creating a new note based on the post that you just read.
4. Create and title your new note, "Evernote Activity 3". You may choose to create this note within your "College Resources" notebook, your "URI101" notebook, or any notebook that makes sense for you.
5. Assign a new tag for this note based on the blog post content. If needed, look back at the suggested strategies in this tutorial for how to create tags (i.e. think about content and function).
6. Based on your reading, briefly write about one idea that you really liked and might like to try, and also list one question (or concern) that you still have about Evernote or that you now have after reading the blog post.
7. At the end of your new note, copy and paste a link to the original blog post. You can do this one of two ways - by web-clipping the blog post that you read into your Evernote and then copying that note link into your new note; or, you can copy and add the external web link into your note. If needed, look back at the instructions in this tutorial for further guidance.
8. Once you've completed this task, e-mail your newly created note to your URI 101 instructor.

After completing this activity, visit the Discussion link on Sakai and participate in the Evernote group discussion - 03 Organizing Your PKB.


Be sure to check out the additional resources under the 'For More Information...' section on the 03 Organizing for Success main page.